Old Wine Trails With Old Friends
Sunday found my friends Doug and Steve riding the BART from San Francisco to meet BK and me in Oakland. Then I drove (rather precariously, I was told) up to Napa Valley. That’s normally not my first choice in wine destinations, but Doug is an old friend. We’ve been through good times and bad, and he took me to wine country–Santa Barbara–for the very first time when I went to visit him in L.A. however many years ago that was.
So when he said Grgich Hills, I headed along 29 instead of veering over to 12. Our first stop brought back more familiarity. I mentioned Domaine Chandon because when I came to CA two years ago looking for a job, my friend Amelia and I had gone there and had a deliciously rich sparkling red. Since it’s not a wine they distribute or sell year-round, I suggested we go there. Thank heavens, it was on the list, and since it wasn’t on any of the tasting menus, I had to simply have a glass of the tasty concoction of Pinot Noir and Zinfandel. Unlike the last time I bought a bottle, when I had to rearrange my already-full case to find a way to get that bottle back to Mississippi, I could take as many as I wanted could afford on this visit. Which was only two because I had promised myself not to buy any wine on this trip… We walked over the bridge on our way out, apologizing to the ducks for not bringing bread as I had intended and admiring the stone mushroom garden that had also struck my fancy before.
With lunch and beer in our bellies from a little place in Yountville, We kept heading north until we got to Grgich Hills, which was celebrating its 30th anniversay, as they started in 1977. Just like us, Doug had to point out. We tasted despite the plethora of fruit flies with a very nice pourer. She told us about the Judgment of Paris (about which I didn’t know as much in regards to the whites as I did the reds) where Mike Grgich was the winemaker for the Chardonnay from Chateau Montelena that took top honors and how the winery is now completely biodynamic (though I think I already knew that). While I liked the Fume Blanc Essence and the award-winning Cabernet, I ended up leaving with a bottle of the Chardonnay with just enough hint of oak influence and just enough money spent to add a little more guilt over not sticking to my plans.
More to follow…
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POSTED IN: Napa Valley, winery visits
5 opinions for Old Wine Trails With Old Friends
john witherspoon
Nov 30, 2007 at 7:37 am
Hey Farley,
Grgich was the first winery we went to in Napa a few years ago. I had heard a podcast of Mike Grgich, and thought to myself anyone that passionate has to make good wine. (pretty expensive though) The Judgement of Paris is a really good book if you haven’t read it yet. Maybe Santa can leave it under the tree for you.
See ya
John
Farley
Dec 1, 2007 at 12:00 pm
John,
Wasn’t there a book written when they did the retasting last year? Or maybe I’m making that up. Because to me that’s where it gets really interesting, as the French had to eat their words.
john witherspoon
Dec 1, 2007 at 4:09 pm
Hey Farley
Not sure about the retaste book. I will have to check into that, I am sure someone must have chronicled the event. I know I read lots of articles on it at the time, people hoping that this would close the chapter on the ‘77 tasting - and stop people from making excuses as to why the American wines won back then.
I’ll let you know if I find anything.
John
:)
BK
Dec 5, 2007 at 11:28 pm
That sparkling red was really, really good. This was a fun day trip, lots of good wines and a few interesting characters to go with them. I wouldn’t go so far as to say the drive was precarious, but that was a pretty sneaky trick you pulled off by making it 22 miles out of the way before we noticed in order to get to the Fairfield outlet stores!
farley
Dec 6, 2007 at 9:31 pm
BK,
I told you guys I did not do that on purpose!!
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